The phase Tough times don’t last but tough people do is a familiar one. Therefore whether one is living in Europe, Africa or even in the United States of America, people are undoubtedly living in hard economic times.

What are hard economic times

Great economies are facing hard economic times and are struggling, hence living in a country where majority live below the poverty line, things seem to be moving from bad to worse. The Banking industry is also affected by hard economic times.

If one reads the Bible, one will notice that these are not unique situation. There are stories of mothers eating their babies and people feasting on the refuse of the donkeys. People in ancient days also lived through hard economic times too.

One of the most mind boggling things about the human species is the ability to adopt and be very innovative during these times. Tough people have an inner strength and that is why they have the ability to last during tough times. It is not about physical strength but inward strength that they draw from.

 Some of the secrets for living in hard economic times

• They acknowledge the change due to living in hard economic times and that is not business as usual.
• Apart from acknowledging the times they are living in they set strategies on how to thrive while living in hard economic times. This is to ensure that at the end of these hard economic times, they will not be beaten to pulp. Put in simple words they do not just whine but take action.
•  one must avoid taking loans and learn debt management strategies

Highlights of financial strategies one would adopt while living in hard economic times

1. Stick to your budget especially on non essential expenses. Take for example your monthly budget for fuel for your car; when you realize you are spending beyond this budget then reduce the number of times you use the car and stick to the budget. For ladies maybe one should reduce the visits to the salon, one can opt to do basic hair maintenance like washing or even treating the hair at home.
2. Please do not dispose off your near cash investment to meet your daily living expenses. These are assets such as shares. After all, with the poor performance of the economy one is likely to sell them at a loss.
3. There is no use on spending on holidays one cannot afford. You can opt to take the family for a simple drive to the park and spend quality time together instead of taking an expensive trip to the coast yet they cannot afford the same so they have to borrow. Let prudence take the place of pride, put image issues aside everyone is feeling the pinch.
4. Make sure when going to the supermarket a shopping list should be in hand to avoid buying what one does not need.

 

In the middle and lower class bracket where the salary is not increasing as fast as the inflation rate, disciple is one of the key qualities adopted.  Let us keep hope alive as we see these hard economic times through.